Waiting on the Day
by Doctor Addison Montgomery
Summary: Kate/Jake. Set immediately after 7x06 'Dependent'. Kate tries to reconnect with her sister but it isn't as easy at it sounds. She finally explains to Jake why the case had upset her so much, but what will this mean for their relationship?
1. Part 1

Waiting on the Day  
Part One

_Kate/Jake. Set immediately after 7x06 'Dependent'. Kate tries to reconnect with her sister, but it isn't as easy as it sounds. She finally explains to Jake why the case had upset her so much, but what does it mean for their relationship?_

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**1.**

"Should I ask what that was about?" Jake said when he and Ronnie were sat a table in the pub; a beer and an orange juice in front of them.

"What 'what' was about?" Ronnie feigned innocence and failed.

"Something is going between you and Kate; something to do with the piece of paper you gave her."

Ronnie held his hands up in surrender. "Guilty as charged, Your Honour." The grin faded a little. "No, but seriously mate, she'll tell you when she's ready."

Jake frowned; Kate was still somewhat of a mystery to him. She was like a case that took months to crack, but he knew that he would solve her eventually. His feelings for her were in confusion and even after a couple of months working together now, he didn't feel like he really knew who she was. He knew that she liked ridiculous footwear, beer and arguing cases, but he knew very little about her personal life; much less apparently than Ronnie Brooks.

"This case, it got to her, didn't it?"

Ronnie chuckled. "Nah mate, I'm not in the witness box now, you can't crack me that easy."

They drank their drinks and the conversation moved onto different subjects, but Jake was still thinking about Kate.

* * *

While they were in the pub, Kate stepped out of the underground station and looked around for the right street. The piece of paper that Ronnie had given her with Beth's address on was crumpled now. She had barely let go of it since Ronnie had handed it to her. She hated to be ungrateful when he had done this for her, but she wished Jake hadn't been present at the time. He had been as discreet as possible but she knew that Jake would still be curious. He probably did deserve an explanation for her erratic behaviour recently but she was a little scared of opening up to him too much.

At least he had forgiven her for talking about the case to Liz, and she had learned a valuable lesson from the experience. She never wanted to be on the receiving end of one of Jake's angry tirades ever again either.

She found the right street and began to search for house numbers, specifically number 32. This was a very different part of London to the one she had just left with its offices, restaurants and boutique shops. Kate was a little of afraid of the state she would find her sister in. What if she wanted nothing more to do with Kate; what if she was hooked on drugs again?

* * *

Jake stayed at the pub for a couple of hours, drinking with Henry, Sam and Wes when they arrived. No one mentioned Kate's absence, they all knew this case had been hard on her but like him they didn't know exactly why. Jake was disappointed that she didn't show up though, and he couldn't help wondering what Ronnie's note had contained. It must be something important for her not to be here, where everyone would have congratulating her for her victory in court.

He went home after his third beer, feeling more relaxed than he had in weeks. His caseload had been light while the Jenkins and Pendle case was on, so he had nothing major to prepare. At home he changed into jeans and jumped, put on a movie and relaxed on the sofa. The craziness of the last week or so now made him feel adrift and a little lonely in his flat.

Jake thought about ordering food but he didn't feel hungry. He let the film carry him away instead. The end credits were rolling when the buzzer went. He was curious; he wasn't expecting any visitors and especially not this late.

"Can I come up?" He was surprised by the voice he heard and pressed the button to let her up to his floor without even thinking.

Kate was still shivering when he went to his front door to let her in. He couldn't tell if she had been crying or if the bitter wind had just made her eyes water. He looked down and saw that her Ugg boots were soaked, turning them a much darker shade of brown.

"Come in, Kate" He said, not used to seeing her look vulnerable in anyway. He was surprised even further when she closed the gap between them, put her head on his chest and began to cry.

Jake was so taken aback that it took him a few seconds to make a move to comfort, putting one hand on her back and stroking her hair with the other. He had seen Kate angry before, but he had never known her to be upset like this. He wondered if it had something to do with the case or the note that Ronnie had given her. He didn't realise that it was actually both of these things.

It took Kate a few minutes to get herself together, and when she had, she pushed herself out of his arms.

"I'm sorry," She said, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. She was embarrassed that she had fallen apart, and that she had done it in front of Jake.

He had led her to the sofa but remained standing, seeming to tower over her. She wished she hadn't come; couldn't remember why she had thought coming here was a good idea.

"Don't be sorry," He said. "Tell me why you're so upset."

Kate took off her gloves, they were grubby now with bits of dirt stuck to the wool, and focused on them instead of looking at Jake. She did want to tell him everything about why she had been behaving so strangely; why this case has affected her so much and why she had disappeared after the case was closed rather than going to the pub with him like normal. She was worried though that he wouldn't understand and that he was still angry with her for all the mistakes she had made. If he had talked to a member of the opposition about her case, she would have been even more pissed off than he had been with her.

Jake sensed Kate's hesitation. "I'll get us a drink." He said, walking through to the kitchen and getting two bottles of beer. He was halfway back to the living room when he decided that they would probably need something stronger. He picked up a bottle of whiskey from the kitchen shelf and poured a generous amount into two glasses.

Kate looked up when he came back in with their drinks, the tiniest smile telling him that he made the right choice. Jake sat down next to her on the sofa now, quite close but so there was still plenty of room between them.

"Talk to me," He prompted gently and she did, taking a deep breath and pouring out everything to him.

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_Hope you liked it. More to come soon. Reviews are loved. :) xx_


	2. Part 2

Waiting on the Day  
Part 2

_Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed the first chapter, I really appreciate it! It's nice to know there are more Kate/Jake fans out there, too! xxx_

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**2.**

Kate felt groggy, like her brain had become cotton wool. She blinked a few times to clear her vision but it didn't help her to figure out where she was. Fragments of last night and the previous few days came back to her, and then it suddenly hit her: she was still at Jake's!

She was on the sofa with a blanket tangled around her legs. It could've been worse; she could have been in Jake's bed. Oh God, where was he?

She looked around for a clock, and then spotted her mobile phone on the coffee table. She picked it up and saw she had a text message, which must have been what had awoken her. It was from Ronnie, wanting to know if she was alright. She sent him a quick reply so that he wouldn't worry about her.

Jake still hadn't appeared so Kate folded up the blanket, tracked down her coat and Ugg boots. It was still early, maybe she could sneak out without waking him? Mature? Maybe not, but it would save some face. She quietly let herself out of his flat, the door closing behind her with a soft click. It was only then she remembered her phone was still on the coffee table.

* * *

Jake was awake when Kate left, but he stayed still in his bed waiting to see what she would do. He was equally relieved and disappointed when he heard her leave. Maybe she was trying to make the situation easier for the both of them, or maybe she regretted how much she had opened to him the night before. He climbed out of bed and went into the kitchen to make some coffee.

The living room smelled faintly of Kate's subtle perfume and as he looked around, he saw her phone. He picked it up, studied the blank screen and put it down again. He could return it to her at the office.

Working with her could be awkward after last night, but he hoped things could be normal between them. But really, had their relationship, personal or professional, ever been normal? Last night had certainly changed things.

* * *

Kate walked home rather than taking a taxi or using the underground. It wasn't a long walk and the cold early morning air helped her to function better. She felt a little guilty for running out on Jake, but she wasn't sure if she was ready to face him. She hadn't meant to tell him everything, but somehow it had all come out.

She had told him everything that she had shared with Ronnie and what had happened when she went to visit her sister at her new address. She could still smell the mould from the damp basement rooms Beth was living in, and the vacant look in her eyes.

Beth hadn't want to see her, and it was only after Kate had given upstairs tenant a twenty pound note that she was allowed down into the dingy space below stairs. Kate didn't want to even consider what the housemate would spend the money on.

Beth was blonde like Kate, but hers was unwashed and fell around her face in lank sections. It was broke Kate's heart all over again to see her in such a state. She wanted to hug her sister, to take her back to her own flat with her but she knew from experience that it wouldn't do either of them any good.

Kate had stayed with her as long as she could bear, and when she left she promised she would visit again soon but Beth didn't seem to care. She knew that this was partly because she had never got over having to give up her baby, which was why Ruth Pendle had affected Kate so much. If only she could somehow help her sister to get clean and stay clean, maybe Beth could have regular access to her child.

It had seemed natural to go to Jake's flat after that. It was as if her feet had led her there once she had left the tube station. She was outside his building before she even realised that was where she had been heading.

* * *

When she got back to her own flat, Kate took off yesterday's clothes and got straight into the shower. She turned the water up as hot as she could stand and let it soothe away the aches from sleeping on Jake's sofa.

Jake was at work before her, as always, sitting at his desk and checking his emails. He looked up when Kate walked in and gave her a brief smile before returning his attention to the computer screen. He wanted to let her make the first move, after all she had been the one to leave without a goodbye.

Kate sat down at her own desk and took a deep breath. "Thank you for last night and letting me stay on your couch. I'm sorry for dumping all of my issues on you."

"You're welcome and it was no problem."

They were being polite to each other, which was definitely something new, and not necessarily a good thing. Jake was starting to think he preferred it when they fought.

"Oh," he said, standing up and walking across to where his coat was hung up. "You left his behind last night."

"Thank you," Kate replied, taking her phone from him at unfortunately the same moment that Henry walked into their office with some papers in his hand. He looked Jake to Kate and then back to Jake again, both of them wondering just how much of their conversation he had overheard.

There was nothing pressing for either of them to do at work that day, just catching up on emails and paperwork for cases that they had neglected while the Pendle and Jenkins trial was taking place. They worked in silence for most of the morning, the sound of their fingers typing on their keyboards the only sound. Kate really wanted to say something but every time she opened her mouth to speak she stopped herself. It was unlike her not to have some kind of response; to feel out of her depth in a situation like this. Maybe she cared about Jake more than she was ready to admit or maybe she was just emotionally and physically exhausted.

* * *

Henry returned later in the morning with another stack of potential cases for them to work on, leaving them on the bookcase and asking Jake for a word in his office.

Surprised, Jake saved his document and followed Henry out of the room. Kate looked up, meeting his eyes as he walked by her desk.

"Jake, take a seat," Henry said in a friendly tone, but Jake still felt like he had been sent to the Headmaster's office. "You and Katherine, I need to know, is it going to interfere with you work?"

"Sorry?" Jake frowned.

"I may not be a lawyer not a detective, but I think the romantic tension between you and Kate is pretty evident. I overheard your conversation about her leaving her phone at your home last night, Jake."

To his horror, Jake felt a blush creeping up his neck. "Kate and I aren't involved, Henry," He insisted. "She came over last night because she was upset about the case and how we'd argued. It got late and we'd had a few drinks, so she spent the night on my sofa." He didn't know why he was saying all of this and feeling so defensive.

"Alright, fair enough, but if anything does happen between the two of you, you leave it outside when you come to work."

"Of course," Jake said, leaving the office as soon as Henry dismissed him.

"What was that about?" Kate asked when he came back into their shared office.

"Oh, nothing important" He lied and went back to work but he couldn't stop thinking about his conversation with Henry.


End file.
